CIBA Vision Temporary Position - Lab Technician In R&D Interview Questions & Reviews

Interview Details – My experience was through a temp agency - they saw my resume on Monster.com and called me to screen me for the job they were trying to fill at CIBA. From that phone-call, they decided to forward my application to the hiring manager at CIBA. 2 business days later, they called me to schedule the interview, which ended up being the very next day.

The interview was held in a conference room with 3 people interviewing me (was not warned how many people would be on the interview panel - some of my coworkers have had interview panels with as many as 8 people for a temp position). My initial impressions were all good, the building/office park is beautiful, and everyone was so friendly and welcoming. Everyone was dressed in business casual - khakis and button-down shirts, but I was still glad I wore a suit.

The interview questions were pretty tough - very specific and technical questions mixed with many behavioral questions. The hardest one was, "what would your previous supervisor say about your biggest weaknesses?" The interview lasted for around 55 minutes. Then, the hiring manager took me down the hall to show me the lab and introduce me to some of the other employees (I thought that was a great sign). The lab was really well equipped and the employees all seemed really friendly.

Negotiation Details – The temp agency did not give me any opportunity to negotiate after the job offer, even though I tried my hardest to push for a counter-offer. (I had already named my salary requirement before they forwarded my application to CIBA). I was appalled that there was no room for negotiation, but still accepted the job, mainly because I knew it would be a great place to work, and I thought I would have another opportunity to negotiate once they hired me on permanently at the end of my contract.

It turns out, they never hired me on permanently -- just renewed my contract several times. This part of the process was very misleading - I had been led to believe that the company usually hires temps as permanent employees - but this is not true. They just renew the temp contracts over and over again, never offer a permanent position with benefits.